


Isn't it wonderful?

by CoffeeSmokesAndDietCokes



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Dudley Dursley Has a Magical Child
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-06
Updated: 2019-05-06
Packaged: 2020-02-27 06:26:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18733453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CoffeeSmokesAndDietCokes/pseuds/CoffeeSmokesAndDietCokes
Summary: Harry receives a letter from his cousin after twenty four years of nothing... "I need your help". What on earth could Dudley need from him?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Suffering from a little bit of writer's block so thought I would try writing this little Ficlet before I focus on my main projects again :')

_ _ _ _ _ 

Dear Harry,  
I apologise for writing to you after so many years, but I don’t quite know where else to turn. I need your help. Could you please get in touch? I live in mum and dad’s old house, and the telephone number is the same but I’m not sure whether you have one of those…  
I understand if you never want to talk to me again, but I had to try.  
I hope you’re well, and I shall not contact you again in case that is what you want. If nothing else, please know that I am so sorry for how I acted when we were young- I’m sorry I didn’t protect you the way I should have.

Dudley Dursley  
_ _ _ _ _  
Harry

Harry stared at the letter, his mouth agape. There had been no contact between himself and any of the Dursleys in twenty-four years, since they had driven away from Privet Drive with Hestia and Dedalus the week before he turned seventeen. What on earth could Dudley want from him? Still reeling, he finally looked up from the letter to where his husband was standing at the end of their dining table.  
“Is something wrong?”  
Tossing the letter onto the table, he stood up. “My cousin needs my help,” he stated simply.  
To his credit, Draco simply raised an eyebrow questioningly. “Your cousin,” he repeated, and Harry nodded. “You mean, your muggle cousin?”  
“Yes Dray, my muggle cousin,” Harry clarified, then he sighed and sat back down in front of the letter, staring harshly as though he hoped it would spontaneously combust. “Of course, he didn’t think to tell me what he needed, only that he needed help and where to find him. Says sorry and that he wouldn’t be surprised if I never spoke to him again but, Dray, I think it might be serious. I mean, what else could have prompted- well, this.”  
“So help him.”   
Harry smiled sadly, but did not respond for a few moments. Instead, he fiddled with the corner of the letter absentmindedly. “What are you scared of?” Draco queried softly, taking the chair next to his husband and moving pulling one hand into his own lap. “It has been years Harry, the man has probably changed and at the very least, it seems like he must have been pretty desperate in order to call you for help. Don’t you think we should at least hear him out?”  
“We?” Harry was surprised, he had not thought that Draco would want to help with whatever was going on.   
“Of course, I’m not letting you meet your big bully of a cousin alone,” Draco teased. “Besides, when have I ever not been by your side?”  
It was true, supposed Harry. Since he and Draco had reconnected at a ministry dinner three and a half years ago, where Harry had been drinking away the depression that was a result of his recent divorce, Draco had never once not been by his side when needed. They had suffered through six months of close friendship before Draco, drunk on Mead and Firewhiskey, had declared that he was tired of waiting. A second later, Harry found himself with a man on his lap kissing him senseless. It had not been smooth sailing for the first year as the children got used to one another- and Ron and Draco had their fair few spats before eventually laying their schoolboy rivalry to rest- but Harry had never been happier than he was now.  
Pulling his hands away, Harry stood. “You’re right, I should go” he decided. “Are you coming?”  
“Wait, now?”  
“Well, yes. I need to find out what in the hell is going on or else this is just going to worry me until I do. So I’m going. Are you?”  
Draco surveyed him with wide eyes for a moment, before standing too. “Yes,” he declared, pulling his travelling cloak off the hook in the corner. “Will you apparate us though? I don’t know Surrey well enough.”   
Harry nodded then, taking his husband’s hand, he turned on the spot disappearing into thin air.   
_ _ _ _ _

Alex

There was a knock on the front door as he reached the foot of the stairs, startling him a little. This was nothing, however, to his surprise as he opened the front door to see two men wearing what could only be described as cloaks. Dudley’s voice sounded from the living room- “Who the ruddy hell is calling at this time of night?”- and Alex noticed the shorter man flinch slightly.   
“Hello,” he offered, but he saw that the smaller man’s eyes were now fixed on something just over his right shoulder and, turning slightly, he saw Dudley in the doorway of the lounge staring right back. Nobody said anything for what seemed like quite a while, before he heard Dudley sigh, “Harry, you came.”  
Utterly bewildered, Alex turned his head back and forth between the three men, before he realized that nobody seemed inclined to say anything further. “Look, I don’t quite know what is happening,” he said to the men still stood in the doorway, “but would you like to come inside?” He tilted his head in question, and the shorter man nodded before walking in and turning into the living room- almost like he knew exactly where to go noticed Alex. Closing the door behind them, he followed into the front room.   
“Anything to drink?” he asked the newcomers, who both shook their heads.   
“No, thank you.” It was the blonde man who spoke, and Alex noticed that they sat rather close together on the sofa closest to the door, like they thought a quick escape might be needed. Shaking his head slightly at the bizarre-ness of the situation, Alex took a seat in the armchair opposite them and turned his head as Dudley started to speak.  
“Al, this is my cousin Harry. Harry, this-” he faltered. “This is my husband Alex.”   
Harry coughed and spluttered, and Alex was sure that had he been taking a drink they would all have been sprayed. The blonde man patted him softly on the back, as Harry stared at Dudley with incredulity.   
“Is that going to be a problem?” Alex kept the anger out of his voice, just barely, but was only more confused when the blonde man chuckled to himself.  
“Husband, Dud, really? That wasn’t in your letter.” Harry guffawed, but turned to Alex and continued. “No, it won’t be a problem. Allow me to introduce my husband Draco.”  
Dudley roared out a laugh, as Harry continued to stare at them. Not unkindly but nonetheless wary. Alex decided that he was confused enough, so turned to Dudley and asked, “what letter?”  
The laughing stopped abruptly, and Harry and Draco seemed to sit up a little straighter to hear the story to. A sheepish smile spread across Dudley’s face as he considered the question, then sat back in his chair pulling something from his pocket as he spoke. “Yesterday morning I got a letter,” he began, handing a thick envelope to his husband. Harry’s eyes widened as he recognized the wax seal on the back. “It’s about Ella. I thought- well, I knew I needed Harry’s help to explain this to you let alone to her and frankly I was scared because I don’t know how to help her through this and-”  
“Dudley-” interrupted Harry. “Why don’t you let him read the letter before you start making him panic, yeah?” Dudley nodded, shutting his mouth quickly and folding his arms across his chest before Harry continued. “So Ella, that’s your daughter?”   
Alex nodded, holding the letter still unopened in his hand. Not quite sure whether he was ready to read anything yet, especially anything that had got his husband so worked up, he decided that answering Harry’s questions was the safest option. “We adopted her on her fifth birthday which was-”  
“-six years ago today.” Finished Harry. Alex threw a questioning glance at him, but Harry did not continue.  
“Alex, what do you know about magic?” asked Draco kindly.   
“M-magic?”  
“Yes, magic. Do you know anything about it? Do you even believe in it? I promise this will make more sense in a moment.”  
“Well I, I don’t think I ever really thought about it besides those magic tricks you see in school talent shows and much. Is that what you mean?”   
“Not in the slightest.” Dudley’s voice was a little weary, and Harry noticed that he had gone a little pale. “He means, do you believe in witches and wizards and dis-members and werewolves and such?”  
Draco looked towards Dudley in confusion, but Harry laughed from beside him. “Dementors, Dudley, not dismembers.”  
“Right, Dementors then.”  
“What the bloody hell is a dementor?” barked Alex, who felt more confused than he had in a long while. “Why are you asking me about witches and wizards? And how do you know that today is my daughter’s birthday if Dudley didn’t even tell you we had one I mean- what in god’s name is going on?”   
“From the start, a dementor is a dark creature which usually guards the wizard prison Azkaban. I’m asking you about witches and wizards because you need to know about them and it helps if we have some understanding of what you already know- which doesn’t seem to be a lot- and I know that today is Ella’s birthday because those letters come on a child’s eleventh birthday when said child is a witch or wizard. Simply put, Alex, your daughter is magic.” Silence met Harry’s words, before Alex burst out laughing.   
“Oh that was good! You worked hard on that one, what is this, some family joke or something? What in the world possessed you to come over here and-” he trailed off as he noticed that nobody was laughing. Draco, in fact, looked rather offended. Dudley looked scared, and Harry was sitting on the sofa patiently waiting for quiet to fall again. Alex noticed that he had pulled something out of his pocket, a long stick, and was pointing at the wall.   
“NO!” shouted Dudley, shooting up from his seat quickly and rushing to stand in front of his husband. “Please, Harry, No,” he pleaded.   
Harry looked from Dudley’s petrified face, to his wand, to where Alex was still sat peering out from behind Dudley’s legs. “Oh, Dudley, No I wasn’t going to hurt him” Harry insisted quickly. “I’m sorry, I forgot what your experience with wizards has been like. I was only going to show him- watch.” Pointing his wand upwards snow started to fall from the ceiling, then slowly began changing colors before resting on the floor as confetti. “I won’t hurt you, Dud” Harry promised, as he stood slowly.   
Breathing heavily, Dudley nodded, but instead of moving back to his own seat he sat on the corner of the armchair and took Alex’s hand. “Sorry-” he mumbled.   
Alex was staring at Harry as though he had grown an extra head. “You- you can- what the hell?”  
Harry shrugged and smiled towards the man. “I’m a wizard, yes. So is Draco. Ella is a witch. Dudley and yourself are muggles, that is to say you are not magic. I know this is all a tad confusing-” Alex scoffed at that. “- but Dray and I will help you out with whatever you need. Now, I believe you should read that letter.” Harry flicked his wand again, and the letter rose from where it had fallen onto the floor in Alex’s tirade, and opened itself in mid air. 

Dear Ms Dursley-Atkins. -he read.  
We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.  
Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.  
Yours Sincerely  
Neville Longbottom, Deputy Headmaster.

Alex folded up the letter placing it back inside the envelope, before pulling out a second sheet of thick, yellowed paper.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY

Uniform  
First year students will require:  
-Three sets of plain work robes (black)  
-One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear  
-One pair protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)  
-One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)  
Please note that all pupil’s clothes should carry name tags

Set books  
All students should have a copy of each of the following:  
-The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk  
-A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot  
-Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling  
-A Beginners Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch  
-One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Sport  
-Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger   
-Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander  
-The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble

Other Equipment  
-1 wand  
-1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)  
-1 set glass or crystal phials  
-1 telescope  
-1 set brass scales

Students may also bring an owl OR cat OR toad.

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS

And at that, Alex fainted.  
_ _ _ _ _  
Harry

Harry watched as the man in front of him fell forwards, pitching face first off the chair onto the floor and landing softly on the ground. If not for the cushioning charm that Draco quickly cast though, Harry knew it would have broken his nose. Pointing his wand, he whispered “ennervate,” and Alex’s eyes opened slowly.   
“Oh god,” he groaned, catching sight of the house guests. “So it wasn’t a dream.”  
Draco chuckled, helping the man to his feet again. “That would be a negative. Are you alright? Would you like some water?” He conjured a small glass at Alex’s nod, passing it to the taller man then moving back to his seat across the room. Harry noticed that Dudley was now re-reading the letter, seemingly taking note of the book titles.   
“Hey Harry,” his cousin smiled shyly, “does this mean you get to show us what that giant was talking about?”  
Laughing, Harry nodded, then turning to Draco- “Did I ever tell you what happened when Hagrid brought me my Hogwarts letter?” he reminisced. “Dudley here ended up with a pigs tail and I got my first birthday cake all in one day, it was quite eventful.” Harry watched Dudley pale at the memory, and giggled to himself.   
“Pig’s tail?” queried Alex, who seemed to have been restored to his normal coloring.  
Harry chuckled, although Dudley did not. “I think Hagrid, a friend of ours who works at Hogwarts, well he seemed to know that me and Dudley didn’t quite get on while we were kids. So, when he wanted to prove a point to Vernon, he gave Dud a nice pink tail. It certainly caused him to squeal like a pig, that’s for sure.”  
“Harry, I was awful to you,” whispered Dudley, who was looking rather shaken himself as though it were he that had just found out about magic. “Why-” Dudley glanced to Alex and then back to his cousin. “Why on earth are you being so nice to me now, when we both know how I treated you?”  
Harry nibbled his lower lip for a moment, looking from his cousin to his husband, then sighed. “If I didn’t forgive those who treated me badly-” he admitted quietly, “I would have nobody. I would never have believed that I am saying this but, I honestly don’t hate you for what happened. We were children, and your parents were the majority of the reason you acted the way you did anyway so- forgive and forget. You apologized and I believe you. Plus, I’m far more powerful than you now anyway,” he jested lightly. “I’d like to see you try and wrestle me now.” Harry winked, and Draco snorted.  
“God, don’t take him up on that- I learned the hard way” Noticing Dudley’s uncomfortable look, Draco continued. “Dudley, Harry and I used to hate each other you know. It was mostly misguided jealousy and family rivalry but, we have done some pretty nasty things to one another over the years. Your cousin,” he added softly, “is one of the most honorable, forgiving men that I have ever had the fortune to meet. I actually tried to kill him once and he still forgave me for everything. If you really feel like you don’t deserve his forgiveness, well, be a better man from now on. I swear to you, even before coming here tonight, he had forgiven everything you went through as kids- his main concern was that we were going to run into your parents here.”  
“Wait- my parents? They died years ago Harry, that’s why I have the house. I thought someone would have told you, at least, I would have but I didn’t know how to get in touch or anything.”  
“I- I didn’t know Dud, I’m sorry” consoled Harry. “Come to think of it though, how did your letter find us? It came with an owl this evening.”  
Surprisingly, Dudley chuckled at this. “I gave it to the owl that delivered Ella’s letter and told her to take it to you- I didn’t know whether it would work but I know that was what you used to do with that owl of yours and- obviously it did work didn’t it.”  
“Obviously” grinned Harry.  
“Wait just one second-” blustered Alex. “You gave a letter to an owl?”   
“Given that most of us live in houses with wards and protections so that muggles can’t see them, yes. It is much easier to deliver a letter to somewhere that you can actually see.” snarked Draco, much to Harry’s amusement.   
“Should have seen when a witch sent a letter here to my dad, couldn’t read the address it was so small and the damn thing was covered in stamps,” laughed Dudley.  
“Right…” muttered Alex.  
“Look, Dud. Your man seems a little overwhelmed, and we need to be heading off so I can pick up the kids from their mum. How about we all go for a coffee at the weekend so you both can process, yeah?” Harry smiled at his cousin, who looked relieved.  
“Why don’t you and the kids come for dinner on Sunday?” he asked. “We’re having a roast.”  
“Dud we have four kids and I wouldn’t subject you to all of them at once”  
“Please,” insisted Alex, much to Harry’s surprise. “We can introduce them to Ella, might help make this a little easier if there is someone she can relate to.”  
Draco grinned at the man, pleased that he seemed to be coming round to the idea of magic in the family. “That would be lovely, Lily is going into her fourth year but I am sure she and Ella will find something in common. Albus and Scorp are sixteen and James will be seventeen at the end of the month. Of course, he acts like a twelve year old still so maybe he and Ella will have plenty to talk about anyway.”  
“Hey you, that’s my son you’re talking about” scolded Harry.  
“Yes, dear.” Draco teased, “and it shows in his every action.”  
Dudley laughed at the duo, “we shall see you on Sunday then, yes?”   
“Of course, see you then. Goodbye, Alex”  
“Bye-”  
“Nice to meet you-”   
With a twist, they were gone.

“Dud, your family is crazy”


	2. Part 2: A Dinner Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn’t actually intend to continue this, but there was some expressed interest so I figured- why not? Also, the chaotic within me desperately wanted me to put Dudley in Diagon Alley with four wizard-raised teenagers and his famous cousin but before I do that I think I need some context-y stuff so-.

Dudley  
Dudley supposed he had probably lost his mind. Inviting a family of freaks into his home for a bloody Sunday roast. No- not freaks, Wizards. That, he thought, might take some getting used to. Dudley Dursley loved his daughter more than anything in the world and, unlike his parents, having a connection to the wizarding world was not going to dampen that love in the slightest. If supporting Ella through this journey meant dinner with the Potters every week, he would do it for her, but best of all was that he knew Alex felt the same way.   
Admittedly, it had taken a few days for the shock of meeting two wizards in his living room to wear off, but Dudley was proud of how far his husband had come over the course of time. On Friday evening, when Ella had returned home from school, the couple sat her down and told her everything. Well- everything they could. When they couldn’t answer all, or even most of her questions, it became apparent that they really would need Harry’s help. A lot of it.   
Dudley smiled to himself as he diced the carrots, remembering his daughter’s reaction to being told that her Uncle Harry and family were coming to dinner and then to take them shopping for school supplies. According to Ella, two gay men in their early forties simply did not understand how important it was to be adequately prepared and dressed for such an important occasion. Alex hadn’t been able to contain his laughter at Ella’s scrambling towards the stairs- desperate to find a suitable outfit in time. Three hours is not nearly enough warning, Papa!  
After placing the chicken onto the roasting tray, surrounded by vegetables, Dudley placed it carefully into the oven and wandered through the house in search of his family. He found them in Ella’s bedroom and watched from the doorway while they combed through the wardrobe in search of ‘suitable attire’. It was quite obvious to anybody who came into contact with the trio that Ella had gotten her fashion sense from her Daddy. Whilst Dudley had changed in many ways since he was a teenager, dropping a lot of weight and taking pleasure in cooking healthy meals and going for long runs, his habit of residing in light jeans and oversized hoodies had not. Alex, on the other hand, usually looked like he had stepped out of some magazine- and their daughter had followed suit. It was hardly worth counting the amount of times Dudley had zoned out at the dinner table whilst his husband and daughter discussed taffeta or the latest fads.   
“They’ll be here soon,” he announced, huffing out a laugh as Ella jumped in surprise. Obviously she had not seen him coming.   
“How soon?”  
“About half an hour. They’re coming a little before dinner so you have plenty of time to interrogate everybody before we leave,” he teased, noting his daughter’s pink cheeks. She nibbled her lip, and Alex pulled her into his side comfortingly.   
“What’s the matter, buttercup?”  
Her voice was small as she replied, and she kept her eyes directed at the edge of the green rug on the floor. “What if they don’t like me?” Alex hugged his daughter tightly and looked towards where Dudley was still stood, asking for help with a glance.   
“Harry is one of the kindest people I have ever known,” reassured Dudley, “and I highly doubt he will have raised his children to be any different.”  
“But they’re older than me, and they’ve known about magic their whole lives!-”  
“-Harry didn’t. My parents didn’t tell him anything. He didn’t find out until a giant broke down the front door of the hut that we ran away to and told him the full story. Mum and Dad were furious, and I was terrified, but Harry had his whole world turned upside down with that one visit. If nothing else, he understands how difficult this is for you. Just give them a chance, sweetheart, okay?”  
She seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then nodded. “Okay, I’ll give them a chance, but get out now.” Dudley looked at her in shock. “I need to get dressed,” she explained, pushing her Papa’s arm from around her shoulders, “and so do you!”  
“I am dressed-” Dudley protested, but Alex took his hand and led him away.  
“No, babe, you’re not.”   
Laughing at her parents, Ella pushed her door shut and stepped in front of the mirror. Staring into her reflection for a moment, she breathed deeply, then she shook her head and puller her white blonde hair out of its long plait. It was time she started getting ready for what was bound to be one hell of a day.   
_ _ _ _ _  
There was a knock at the door roughly forty minutes later, signalling the arrival of his cousin. Dudley paused at the front door to take a deep, grounding breath, then pulled the door open wide and smiled at the sight before him. Two grinning boys stood at the front of the crowd, each the spitting image of their respective father. Behind them a young girl, assumedly Lily, was leaning her head on Draco’s shoulder looking exasperated, whilst the man simply smiled fondly at the boys. Harry brought up the rear, an older boy stood at his side looking up the street with an uncomfortable expression on his face. Dudley was a little relieved to notice that they were all dressed quite normally.  
“Hiya-” came a chirpy voice from the front of the group, and Dudley saw one of the boys looking up at him.   
“We’re the Potters-”  
“-and the Malfoys-”  
“-you must be-”  
“-Harry’s cousin Dudley-”  
“-nice to meet-”  
“-Okay that’s enough!” glowered Lily. “I’m not going to get through this meal if you two start twinning again.” She rolled her eyes good-naturedly at her brothers, then looked up to where Dudley was watching them. “It is nice to meet you though,” she continued kindly.  
“Th-thanks” stammered Dudley.  
“Just ignore them all, Dud, they’ve been bickering all damn day,” laughed Harry from the back.  
“Sure-” Dudley wasn’t quite sure what to say, so he stepped backwards and waved his arm, “come in.” Draco headed through first, leading the family in the direction of the living room, leaving Harry at the rear. As he passed, he shook Dudley’s hand.  
“Good to see you again, Dud.” Then, nodding, he followed into the house.   
When Dudley eventually shook off the feeling of bizarre that seemed to have overcome him, he rounded the corner into the living room to see Alex greeting everybody, and seats being taken on chairs, windowsills and the floor. His daughter’s voice behind him made him chuckle.  
“Really Dad, you couldn’t even find enough chairs for them all?”  
Dudley flushed a little as he muttered “-they’re all around the table,” but Draco smiled kindly, drawing his wand out from his sleeve.  
“Do you mind, Dudley?” he checked quickly, but at Dudley’s nod he drew a large figure of eight in the air, and the sofa- usually big enough for two- stretched before their eyes until it was long enough to span the entire lounge. Ella’s eyes were wide with excitement, and she looked up at Draco eagerly.  
“Show me more?”  
_ _ _ _ _  
Around the dining table sat four dining chairs, one stool, one armchair, two garden chairs and two beanbags, stacked one on top of the other. Dudley noticed, that it was not the chairs catching Harry’s attention. He stared, horror struck, at the oval table sat in the middle, which sat currently uncovered in the center of the room. It suddenly occurred to Dudley that they had not changed the dining table when they moved into Privet Drive, and recalled with horror the times Harry had been thrown across this very room, and his head slammed down hard on the surface at which he was now gaping.  
Quickly stepping back into the living room, he grasped Draco by the arm and pulled him through, ignoring his protests. “Please,” he hissed. “It’s Harry, I forgot about the table I’m so sorry I just didn’t think-” he trailed off as they entered the kitchen again to see Harry still in the exact spot he had been before. Draco moved quickly to face his husband, not touching him but blocking the table from view.  
“Harry, you’re stuck in a memory darling and I need you to come back for me.”  
Dudley watched for a moment, before realizing that he needed to cover the table before this happened again. As he pulled out a tablecloth from underneath the sink, he heard Draco speaking again, his voice calm but firm.  
“Harry, it’s Draco, I know you can hear me. Look at me, recognize me. You’re stuck in a memory but you are safe, he can’t hurt you here. You are at Privet Drive, but he is not. I am here, you are safe-” After a few more minutes of Draco repeating himself, Harry seemed to come back to himself. Dudley had covered the table with a large blue cloth and set places for everybody where the seats had already been deposited, but he saw Harry’s eyes wash over the table again nervously before the man looked back to Draco. Seeing his husband’s face seemed to be the last straw, because Harry’s head fell onto his shoulder and he started to cry quietly.  
Draco held Harry in his arms as the man sobbed, and Dudley felt a little uncomfortable- as though he were intruding- but continued pulling the roast out the oven and setting it down. He was shocked when a moment later a slightly shaky Harry was next to him again, pulling plates out of the correct cupboard and walking over to the table to set them down. “You don’t have to-” he began, but Harry shook his head.  
“I’ve been having flashbacks since before the war, Dud, don’t worry about it. I’m surprised actually, it has been a while since something so trivial has set me off.”  
Dudley frowned. “You may have worked through everything that set off the war related flashbacks Harry, but you probably haven’t seen many things over the years that remind you of the trauma you faced here. I was honestly shocked that you had no reaction to walking past the cupboard.”  
Harry seemed to consider him for a moment then returned to Draco’s side, pulling the taller man into a hug, mumbling against his shoulder, “At least I was expecting to see the cupboard.”  
Alex walked into the kitchen then, followed by the myriad of teens and Ella, stopping short as he noticed the tense atmosphere. “Everything okay?” he questioned.  
“Just a flashback,” Harry sighed, pulling away from Draco to smile at the man. “Nothing to worry about.” Then Harry looked past Alex to where Lily was stood, nodding at her. Dudley watched on, confused, as Lily pulled a small vial out of her handbag and passed it to her father, who un-stoppered it and took a gulp before putting the top back on. Lily reached out, but Harry kept hold of the bottle and instead placed it into his jeans pocket. Then he glanced back to his cousin. “It’s a calming draught,” he explained, kindly.  
“Are you alright?” asked Ella timidly.   
“Yes, just tired.” Harry looked at her for a moment, trying to decide what he should explain, but he settled on the truth. “I had some differing views from your grandparents-”  
“-No,” interrupted Alex. Harry looked up at him in confusion. “Vernon and Petunia are- well, not involved.” Dudley laughed at Harry’s raised eyebrows, and took pity on the man.  
“I started to realise how awful they were when we went into hiding, but really, how do you think they reacted when I came to dinner one week with the news that I was to be getting married to a man?”   
“-not so well I take it?”  
“About as well as they reacted to- what was his name- Hagrid.”  
“You know, you keep mentioning that-” jumped in Alex. “What exactly happened with this guy?”  
Laughing, Dudley shook his head, “We’ll tell you that story another time. Anyway- Cammie and Leon are Ella’s only grandparents.” He turned to Ella then, “My parents were horrible to Harry because they didn’t understand that being magic made him special, not a freak. I was quite mean to him too. When somebody gets treated that badly, sometimes it can make them really poorly when they get older and such. A flashback is when you feel like something is happening again, even though it isn’t, but all the sounds and feelings come back as though it is and it can be really scary. Plus, Harry was in a war. He fought real hard, but horrible things happened to him which means there is even more for his brain to make him remember when it is playing up. Do you understand?”   
Ella looked between her parents and Harry for a moment, but then walked over to where he was standing and put her arms around his middle. Harry was shocked for a moment, before he hugged her in return. Pulling back, she looked directly at him as she spoke.  
“You were really brave, I hope the memories leave you alone soon.” Then, squeezing him one last time, she moved to her seat at the table where the Albus, James, Scorpius and Alex were looking at her with a mixture of wonder and pride on their faces- each of them smiling widely.   
“You’re right, Ella, he was really brave. One day, I will tell you more about what happened. Dad and Dray find it hard to talk about it but I think you will find it interesting. Plus, if you want you can tell people that you are related to The Famous Harry Potter.” Lily winked. “Your classmates will think it’s pretty cool.”  
Dudley put his hand on Harry’s shoulder and squeezed as he watched his daughter chatting along with the siblings. Who ever would have thought that they would come together like this after so much time apart, he wondered. One thing was for sure, he was going to be there for his cousin this time. After all, he had a lot of bad behavior to make up for. Pleased that Ella seemed so comfortable with the group, Dudley braced himself- he had a feeling shopping for witch supplies wasn’t going to go quite so smoothly!


End file.
